The Choosing

Chapter Four: The Choosing (Part One)

Two weeks later...

Lyra was up at the break of dawn. The birds had woken her up just as the sun was peering over the horizon. Having waited two painstakingly long weeks for this day, Lyra was surprised she had slept at all.

Across the hall, Lyra heard her parents rummaging around, getting ready for the trip to the center of Stelletoile. Her mother padded down the hall and knocked on Lyra's closed door.

"We have to leave in an hour - there's no time to eat breakfast, so I left some bread on the breakfast table."

"Mmm." Lyra got up and stepped into her slippers. She opened her closet, searching for the ceremonial robes that had been distributed at school, right before the exams had started. They were pale gold and went down to the floor.  Lyra slipped her arm through. The sleeves were a little long and had a wide opening.

Digging a little further into her closet, Lyra found her soft leather shoes and slipped them on, figuring that the robe was long enough to cover them. She wanted to be as comfortable as possible. Who knew what might happen? No one else except for the nominees and the parents of the nominees were able to come to The Choosing. All qualified candidates of the hosting city, of course, were required to show up for the ceremony where the apprentices would be announced. Candidates outside the host city were only allowed to come by invite only, to save the hassle and chaos of all candidates throughout Oroskopia traveling to the capital. To be invited meant that you were on one or more of The Twelve's "selection list", rumored to be top ten. To make it fair, hosting cities rotated every year. This year Stelletoile, capital of Oroskopia, was hosting.  As there were seven cities - Stelletoile, Polaris, Octantis, Tinoso, Vorieos, Atolia, and Dytaki - Stelletoile hosted once every seven years.

"Ready?"  Lyra's mother peeked her head around the door.

"Yeah." Lyra was already picturing the stadium, in which thousands of people would sit, looking down at the main stage, where the Honorable Twelve would stand and announce their apprentices.

Lyra had a sudden thought. Maybe Paige would be there. The Honorable Twelve were known to bring their favored apprentices with them to various gatherings. She'd show Paige that she was just as qualified to be Libra's apprentice as her big sister.

Walking out of her house, Lyra looked down the street and saw people lined up in front of their houses, cheering as candidates left for the ceremony.

"Lyra!"

Lyra turned to see a beaming Alcie waving frantically at her. She was wearing her robes too, though hers were a little bit rumpled. Lyra gestured towards the wrinkles.

"Didn't you hang it up?"

Alcie shrugged. "Not really. Besides, you're the one that should be anxious about your appearance. You're going to get picked by Libra. Speaking of which" - Alcie pulled a hastily wrapped package - "I got a going-away gift for you."

Lyra took the package and opened it, revealing a beautiful charm. It was made of glass and had a single jade green crystal embedded in it. Alcie's dad was a jewelry crafter. Lyra fingered the charm softly, resting on the crystal.

"Thanks, Alcie. I'll never forget you." Lyra slipped the charm into one of the deep inner pockets of her robes, making a mental note to get a chain to hang it on.

"Come on," Alcie said, looping her arm through Lyra's. "We have to walk all the way to the Choosing stadium - let's not say our true goodbyes yet."

. . .

Author's note: Getting close now. Will Lyra be chosen? Wait and see.

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